Lower Skagit loaded with pinks. Gear guys catch them consistently. But no luck for me. Pinks rolling over the surface near steep banks where access to water can be hard or even dangerous. I used pink and orange flies on sinktip.
Also tried floating line with slow-sinking fly.
Plunkers also use pink flies. One gear fisherman gifted me his successful fly which I've lost couple minutes ago.
Left the river feel frustrated

It's been a while and I don't feel I've ever really untangled the humpy psyche, but guys like Tony knock the piss out of them on the Skagit and I have hooked a bunch on the Stilly on floating lines, long leaders, and small matuka style bunnies or pink estaz chenille bodied flies with light marabou wings, etc.

If I recall, the spot where you fish is key. Choose a spot where the fly will languish in the strike zone. The advantage that gear guys have is to slow the presentation down and leave it "in their face".

Figure out when they get aggressive and fish then. I landed 9 big (very big) chum on a fly rod using floating line to avoid snagging among a line of gear guys who were snagging them intentionally. All of mine were hooked in the mouth, all came up near the surface to swirl on the fly, and I never had to chase them very far because they weren't hooked in the tail or the back like the gear guys. Mid-day and afternoon they would not come after my fly like that but in the early morning they were all over that fly. I used to do this before work just to get a battle in before the day begun.

There are hundreds of thousands of pinks in the Skagit I'm sure, find a place where you can focus on what YOU are doing, not getting distracted by others, and experiment until you unlock the mystery. Then go back to where everyone is and show them how you spank them on the fly! }>

Vic
My best and only fly for pink salmon whether in the salt or in the river called PINK EVE.
#2--6 Mustad 34011SS Or currently using TMC 9394 #4
Pink fish hair.polar bear or plain old buck tail
Tie in tail approx even with hook point 1 1/2 times hook gap
Wrap shank forward to head with oval silver tinsel leaving room to tie in same material as tail extending over 50% of tail finish off with red or pink head.